Man pleads guilty to abusive sexual contact

Michael Weddell Jr. pleaded guilty April 3 to abusive sexual contact by force in connection with an incident involving a girl between the ages of 12 and 15. A document filed on March 25 indicates that between June 1 and July 10, 2015, Weddell had sexual contact with the girl near Wagner.

Weddell faces up to 10 years in federal prison for the offense and could also be ordered to pay a $250,000 fine. He will have to register as a sex offender, spend at least five years on supervised release and pay a $100 assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund and a $5,000 assessment to the domestic trafficking fund, at the court's discretion.

The plea agreement states that both Weddell and the U.S. can argue for whatever sentence they think is appropriate. Weddell is in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service and is scheduled to be sentenced on June 24.